Baffle wall



Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR BY ./fw@ d ATTOR EY J. E. MUHLFELD BAFFLE WALL Filed Jan`. 18. 1928 N ...Mt

May l0, 1932;

May 10,'1932- J. E. MUHLFELD BAFFLE WALL Filed Jan. 18. 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 fire flues or tubes.

Patented May 10, 1932 UNITED STATES PATENT oI-FicE JOHN E. MUHLFELD, 0F SCARSDALE, YQRK BAFFLE WALL Application filed January 1,8, 1823. Seria1 No. 247,536.l

10 box as to provide a maximum combustion space between the grate and the arch at the forward end of the lirebox and which will also effectively prevent the short circuiting of the flame or productsl of combustion to the It is another object of the invention to provide an improved arrangement of the baffie wall in combination with one or more siphons which will permit of direct action of surface area of the Siphon or siphons, thereby more rapidly promoting the generation of steam, resulting in increased boiler capacity and greater fuel economy than has heretofore been attained in the thermic siphon type of firebox.

With the above and other objects in view, the invention consists in the improved baffle wall,and in the form, construction and relative arrangement of its several parts as will be hereinafter more fully described,l illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and subsequently incorporated in the subjoined claim.

In the drawings, wherein I have illustrated several simple and practical embodiments of my present improvements and in which similar reference characters designate `corresponding parts throughout the several viewsf- Figure lis a. longitudinal sectional view through a locomotive firebox illustrating one arrangement of the arch or baille wallin combination with thermic siphons in the iirebox and secondary combustion chamber;

Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional view taken substantially on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1; n

Fig. 3 is a horizontal section taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1. f l

Referring in detail to the drawings, and

the flame and radiant heat upon an extensive P Vwalls, 12 of the siphon 1s in open communimore particularly to Figs. 1 to 3 thereof, 5 designates the outer shellof the boiler, 6 the firebox, and 7 the crown sheet of the firebox. The secondary combustion chamber 8 extends forwardly ofthe iirebox 6, and the wallsof the reboxand said combustion chamber are spaced from the wall of the boiler shell 5 to provide kthe usual water circulating and steam generating space indicatedat 9 of the D requiredv capacity. v f

The numeral 10 indicates the frebox grate, and above this grate one or more vertically disposed siphons indicated at 11 arearranged in the firebox, said siphons constituting auxiliary water legs and being of a well known construction. Each ofthe siphons, as herein shown isV formed from heavy sheet metal having spaced side walls 12 connected at their lower edges by au obliquely'inclined bulbous c ortion 13. `The space between these side cation through the crown sheet ,7 with the water space 9, the upper edges of said side walls being welded or otherwise suitablyl sec cured to said crown sheet. Theobliquely inclined bulbous lower portion 13iof the siphon isforwardly and downwardly extended in the formof a tube indicated at 14 which is connected with the water space 9 immediately abovevthe forward end .of the grate 10.l In the example illustrated by Figs. 1 and 2 kof the drawings, I show two of the siphons 11, equidistantly spaced onopposite sides ofthe center line Vof the firebox. Between each siphon and the side wall of the firebox, an obliquely inclined arch tube 15 is arranged. The forward endsof these tubes are in communication through thel Wall of the secondary combustion chamber 8 with the water space 9.

The rear ends of the'tubes 15 are in comforward ends of the siphon tubes are connected. This throat sheet is indicated by the numeral 26 at the forward end of the grate 10. This prevents short circuiting of the flame and products of combustion, but in such case, the space between the fuel bed and the arch is entirely too limited in depth or yvolume either for proper combustion, or for practical purposes. At the forward end 0f the fuel bed, ash, coal and clinker will accumulate until it reaches the under side of the arch. In order to level this portion of the fuel bed by means of the usual fire tools, it is practically impossible to avoid displacement of the arch brick from their proper positions and more or less serious damage thereto. I have succeeded in entirely obviating this objectionV by the baille wall or arch arrangement illustrated in the drawings.

By reason of the irebox extension forming the secondary combustion chamber 8, Iam enabled to build up the vertical baffle wall 16 of ordinary fire brick which is located immediately at the rear of the forward ends of the larch tubes 15. As shown, a single centrally located siphon 17 of generally similar construction to the siphons 11 extends vertically through the secondary combustion chamber 8 and thebaffle wall 16 closely engages at its upper end with the rear obliquely inclined wall of this Siphon. f. i

Upon the opposite side walls 12 of each of thev siphons 11, supporting studs or trunnions 18 are Welded or otherwise secured in longitudinally spaced relation to each other. Similar supporting trunnions 19 or other suitable means of support arek also secured to the opposite side walls of the rebox.

Preferably, I also provide the additional trunnions 18, 19 respectively, on thewa-lls of the siphons and the furnace side walls which are adapted to engage over the upper faces of the brick. forming the arch wall. This is necessary, since it has been found in practice that when the locomotive is operating with a heavy exhaust which substantially. increases the draft through the fire flues and tubes andthe furnace there is frequently a tendency for the arch brick supported on the trunnions to be lifted up and become displaced from their proper positions onsaid trunnions and the arch tubes. The arrangement of the upper and lower trunnions f between which the brick ends are positioned efectually prevents this vertical lifting or displacement of the arch brick. Y

The baffle brick 2O constituting the horizontally inclined [arch wall are supported at oneof their ends upon the trunnions 18 and 19. The brick between the siphons and the side walls of the lirebox are suitably formed at their other ends for engagement with the upper sides-of the arch tubes 15,

. while the arch brick'arranged between the er combustion space is provided below the arch wall, particularly at the forward end of the iirebox. The rearwardly extending portion of the arch wall is supported at aconsiderable distance above the lower bulbous portions 13 of the siphons, and it will therefore be evident that a considerable part of the surface areaof each of the side walls 12 of the siphons will be subjected to the direct action of the llame and radiant heat of the fuel bed. In the balfleV wall arrangements heretofore used, the evaporation surface of the siphons which represent auxiliary water legs, with the exception of the lower bulbous part 13 thereof, was exposed only to the heat effects of secondary combustion and not at all to the direct action of the flame and radiant heat from the fuel bed. Thus, in the de?"` scribed arrangement, the 'generation of steam will be more rapidly promoted thus resulting in increased boiler capacity and greater economy in the consumption of fuel.

The described construction has been applied to and successfully tested on the Kansas City Southern Railway Mallet'type of locomotive No. 766.

From the foregoing description considered in connection with the accompanying drawings it will be seen that I have devised a very simple formY and larrangement'of a baffle or arch wall for vlocomotive ireboxes of the thermic siphon type which is easily applicable to the conventional arrangement of the siphons,

and necessitates no material alterations of any kind. Also vthe proposed new arrangement 'of the baffle or arch wall enables the fuel bed to be properly leveled without difficulty or damage to the arch brick, and greatly auge ments steam generating efficiency of locomotive fireboxes of this Ytype while Vat the same time reducing operating costs.

In the foregoing description and in the drawings, I have referred to the adaptation of-my present improvements in connection with two forms of thermic siphon fireboxes which are well known in the art. It is however, to be understood that the invention may also be employed in connection with irebox constructions having a single Siphon, or with three or more siphons, and either with or without the arch supporting tubes in addition to the siphoins. It is accordingly to be understood. that in the various practical applications of the bale or arch wall to diferent fireboX constructions, in order to satisfactorily meet the requirements of the particular installation, I reserve the privilege of resorting to various structural changes both in the Y general combination and arrangement of the arch wall in connection with the siphons and in the details of form and construction of the individual arch brick, asmay be fairly considered within the spirit and scope of the invention as claimed;

' I claim:

In combination with a locomotive firebox having laterally spaced siphons therein opening through the crown sheet of the fireboX and each provided with a lower obliquely inclined tubular extension opening through the throat sheet, and arch tubes extending through the lireboX between thesiphons and the side walls of the ireboX; a vertically positioned baille wall in advance of the siphons,

and a horizontally inclined arch wall abutting the upper end of said vertical wall eX- tending rearwardly therefrom, said arch wall consisting of baille brick supported upon the arch tubes and trunnions fixed to the siphons and the side walls of the ireboX, and extending rearwardly between the siphons and the lirebox walls at a point intermediate the upper and lower parts of the siphons to thereby expose a maximum area of the siphon to the direc-t action of ame and radiant heat from the fuel bed.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention, I have signed my name hereto. r

JOHN E. MUHLFELD. 

